My SE84CS arrived last Friday, however the step down transformer did not. So a tense 24 hours later the postie knocked and it was here. ;D

Everything in place now to prepare for a weekend of Audio nirvana.

Unpack the amp, decisions, decisions do i put the Ruby or the RCA rectifier valve in? do i use the SV83 Svetlana or the JJ tesla EL84`s and what about the input 6N1P or 6922?

Ok i settle on the Ruby with the svetlana`s and the 6n1p.

Hook up the ZSLA-1 into the Select, hook up the Tannoys and away we go..........

2 hours later I am a little dissapointed, There is a low level hum that seems to be ZSLA-1 based, The midrange is fabulous, the bass is a bit crumbly too, in so much as there is not much of it.

Move the speakers around a bit opens up the soundstage, decouple the ZSLA-1, Rob it of its 6922 and stick it in the Select,.... set the bias to Dynamic,... plug the cd into the front inputs and....... WOW....... I suddenly understand Steve`s design Philosphy. The Select must be one of the most beautiful sounding amps ever made, certainly in the mids and high ranges, so clear, so dynamic, such a fantastic soundstage, musicians feel as though they are in the room performing stretch out a hand in the dark you may just be able to touch the performer..... Fantastic

Hmmmm now what do I do about the bass

I wonder is the bass being sucked out by the step down trannie? or do the Tannoys just need a bit more wellie? would a second Select strapped into mono be the answer??? decisions, decisions, .......... Not quite Nirvana yet but certainly getting quite close

First thing to do is to do nothing. The bass will change as the amp gets broken in over the next several weeks. Once we arrive at that point we can then determine what needs to be done to improve the bass assuming it still needs it.

My guess is that the speakers do in fact enjoy a bit more meat in which case a pair of the amps bridged into mono should add a considerable amount of weight - as it always does.

A mate brought around his English Papworth audio Monoblocks and Pre amp weighing in at 120lbs, and giving out 100 watts per channel..

Very nice looking bit of kit, shiny stainless steel chassis, 8 EL 34 output tubes in push pull configuration, My poor little Select went scurrying off into the corner to hide when these brutes were brought in through the door!!!!!!!!

Hooked them up to the tannoys, they had a great deal of bass and had a good grip on the lower end generally.

But you know what......... I was glad to see them go,......... hooked up the select again and whilst the bass is very laid back, the select whooped the big brash 100 watter in every other department for me. Much much prefer my Decware amp.

Really cant wait for KeithC to bring his Taboo around !!!!! now that will be an interesting afternoon.

My little Select caused my beloved CJ MV-50 and Audio Research VT-100 to be sent off to new homes ..... ???

Last Friday night, a very amiable chap by the name of Rob from Columbus, Ohio stopped by for a visit. He had some very complimentary things to say about the Decware Select / Parker Behemoth / Decware SO Imperial combo. We started listening around 7:00 PM and were still going strong at 1:30 AM .....

From our conversation in between disks, it was pretty obvious that he has heard some very nice audio gear ..... so I took his compliments seriously.

As I have mentioned in the past ..... when partnered with an appropriate pair of loudspeakers, it will be a rare situation to find the Select to be the "weak link" in an audio system.

Yep same tannoys. I understand just what your saying but having now put the Select with the Tannoys and had extended lstening sessions, I really like it. Maybe it works because its a very small room and to be fair I dont listen at very high levels anyway, and I do not crave the bass that some people seem to enjoy. I find it can become intrusive.

I think a second select might work but I am keeping my options open until I have heard a Taboo on the end of the Tannoys.

The comment made on another forum here in the UK by the guy with the 100 watt PP monoblocks was.......... " Heard Andy's Tannoys today, with his 2watt SET amp and was extremely impressed. Excellent mid and top, plus more bass than I'd have expected. My 100watt amps added more and deeper bass, but to be fair, changed the mix."

That change in "the mix" is what I personally did not like. Incidently the P/P amps and pre amp had a retail price tag of approximately $8000 US.

I don`t desperately need more bass, but if a Taboo or a second Select can provide just a smidgeon more, with the same or similar mids and top end clarity then thats exactly what I am after. I could always use the select with my heresy`s in a second system, if I end up with a Taboo.

Incidently I played the Beatles Abbey Road, Revolver, Let it Be and Let it Be Naked last night........... I have always found the Beatles recordings on CD not right somehow. Last night for the first time they sounded much like there vinyl originals using the Select. Very impressive.

It could also be that in addition to the amp needing some burn-in (if new or not played for some time), you're having to reprogram your anticipation of what it "should" sound like.

That's happened to all of us more than a few times.

If it wasn't for the hassle of trans-oceanic shipping, I'd suggest the Taboo would definitely be worth a trial - I've heard this amp on a couple of DIY Fostex full range speakers, and lack of dynamics and bass authority is definitely not an issue.

so you play the Beatles naked, I tend to save that for Jacqui Naylor or Jewel....

The transatlantic trials are a bit of a pain, but if you have not picked on this up elsewhere on other threads, KeithC who has just bought a new Taboo lives no more than 30-40 miles from me, and he has kindly offered to bring himself and his Taboo to my home for a try out with the Tannoys.

If it works out as I hope then I will place an order for a Taboo with DeVon straight away. Hopefully while the Strong Pound / Weak Dollar situation is still with us.

The transatlantic trials are a bit of a pain, but if you have not picked on this up elsewhere on other threads, KeithC who has just bought a new Taboo lives no more than 30-40 miles from me, and he has kindly offered to bring himself and his Taboo to my home for a try out with the Tannoys.

If it works out as I hope then I will place an order for a Taboo with DeVon straight away. Hopefully while the Strong Pound / Weak Dollar situation is still with us. [/quote]

Yup, I did miss that.

After sticking my neck out, I'm sure there's more than a few folks interested in the results of your audition.

I believe the going rate for such a get together is a 6 pack of Guinness* (each?)

* according to Randy, the official beverage of all Decware jam sessions

Andy,This may sound like preaching to the choir, but if you feel like tweaking your bass (and not just your bass), trying out different rectifier tubes may be an interesting option.

In my SE84B (yes, a low serial number: both a source of pride and a reminder of what I may be missing in the newer amps!), the JAN Philips 5Y3WGTA made a huge difference. A well-liked tube, the vintage Mazda 5Y3GB, was just so-so by comparison. There may be a technical reason for this: I have the 'World' version of the amp and I'm running it on a different power grid from the majority of Zen users in the US. Just a thought.